New Contemporaries

During the course of the year past (and yes it is indeed nearly a year since my college days) I have born the weighty presence of ‘New Contemporaries’. This is an exhibition of sixty recent graduates selected on their degree show held at the Royal Scottish Academy and accompanied by all the pomp and ceremony that this prestigious venue carries with it. No sooner had the initial excitement of showing my work in this stoic venue worn off than I became increasingly troubled by what this privilege entailed. It was not merely the logistics of storing and re-installing a piece that was roughly the size of my bedroom x4. It was also the worry of the hefty bill that comes with re-creating a degree show piece out with the college support network (and supply cupboard).

For the last few months I have found myself glued to Ebay into the early hours of the morning, frantically bidding on projectors. Then there has been the endless transportation (by foot) of planks of wood and weighty electronics from one side of Edinburgh to the other. On top of that there was the uncertainty that (a) I would be able to re-create the piece again and (b) whether the gallery would live to regret it if I did! What, you ask, does the fledgling artist dipping their toes into this competitive world get out of this ordeal?

Not very much, was my initial response, if you discount the back ache and the sleep deprivation. I did however congratulate myself on my resourcefulness at scavenging most of my materials from the local scrap yard - despite the wrath I ensued from the local bus drivers of Prestonpans as they ferried me and my large sheets of wood and glass back to Edinburgh. Secondly there was Emilia and Adam, surely the happiest and most useful people to know in Edinburgh as they come equipped with a van the size of a mobile home. The install was disappointingly simple - so ready was I for a melt-down moment in front of my contemporaries at the RSA that when it failed to materialise I felt alarmingly depleted.

It has been a lot to pay for a confidence boost. However when I cast my eye to the wider picture it really isn‘t as bleak as all that. When I finally came out of the gallery after a constant four day install I thought that that level of stress was not for me and I was going to start looking elsewhere for my kicks. Two weeks on I have just received confirmation of my first solo show at the H-ART Gallery in Colchester later this year. I’m sure this will come with its stresses and strains, sleepless nights and back ache, it seems however, against the odds, that this is also what I thrive off.